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VFK History of SETI Quest
Description The Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence, or SETI, refers to the worldwide search for any communication signal coming from space. This systematic "listening" has taken place and continues today at some of the largest and most sensitive observatories on the planet. It has involved renowned astronomers and research groups located in both hemispheres, as well as individual scientists and amateur radio searchers. The exact origin of SETI is very difficult to specify, as a fascination with the possibility of other worlds besides our own dates back to ancient times. On today's quest, we will investigate the interesting history of the programs which watch the stars for any artificially produced signal from outside the planet earth. Prizes Questions 1. In the summer of 1967, Jocelyn Bell, a research student studying radio astronomy at Cambridge observatory noticed some problems with her data. Her doctoral dissertation included monitoring the information gathered by a new radio telescope which was searching for signs of quasars and interplanetary scintillation. She kept detecting some unknown interference on her readouts. Initially, Bell believed that the interference was coming from earth and her advisor agreed. This phenomenon is common in radio astronomy. Despite their efforts, however, they could not cancel the signal. Where did they discover that the signal originated? * From Tau Ceti * From a local ham radio operator * From the moon * From somewhere in the galaxy 2. As they analyzed the signal, they found that it pulsated at precise intervals of 3 and 2/3rd seconds apart. In 1967, there was no known natural radio source that could produce such an exact signal, which led to a logical possibility that the signal was not natural, but was in fact artificial. They suspected that they were receiving a transmission from an alien culture. They jokingly began to call the origin of the signal LGM, which stood for "Little Green Men." The Cambridge observatory began to attract interest from astronomers and Bell began to invest a great deal of her time following the unusual signal and searching for similar ones. She found this an unwanted distraction from her other work. She said "Here was I, trying to get a Ph.D. on a new technique," Go to the first outback area in Australia and say "Little green men!" 3. The Cambridge LGM signal was an amazing discovery, but was not from an alien culture. It was in fact a pulsar. Pulsars are "rapidly spinning neutron stars" which are radioactive. This would be a very unlikely place to find any sort of life. However, because of the space race between the US and Soviet Union, space and aliens were in the foremost thoughts and imagination of the general public. TV series such as "Star Trek" and "Lost in Space" were very popular, and people wanted to believe that the signals were from another world. This event at Cambridge did much to make SETI a scientific endeavor. An article published in Nature magazine by Philip Morrison and Giuseppe Cocconi, physicists at Cornell University called "Searching for Interstellar Communications," is considered to be the founding document of modern SETI. In what year was the article published? * 1950 * 1959 * 1963 * 1966 4. The article in Nature primarily focused on the possible means of communication that another world might use to contact earth. The authors argue that electromagnetic waves (light waves and radio waves) are the most logical choice. The frequencies chosen as being the most likely to be used for communication between planets were between 1 and 10,000 MHz. Within this range, there is the least interference from the earth's atmosphere on the signal, and where the radiation "noise" from our galaxy is minimal. In 1959, it was also discovered that within this range Cosmic Background Radiation has little impact on the frequencies. SETI enthusiasts know that the probability of success of their search is difficult to estimate. Go to the outside of the Hotel in Western Age, and say their rationale for continuing their search: "but if we never search, the chance of success is zero." 5. The Nature article became the basis for nearly every SETI project since. The conclusion that electromagnetic signals were the most likely form of communication gave the starting point for the search, including the optical searches. It also assumed that any artificial signal would also include a "Doppler drift." So checking for drifting frequencies is standard procedure for SETI projects. The article also suggested that the frequency of 1420 MHz is the most likely communication frequency that another world would use to communicate. What is 1420 MHz? * The emission frequency of the hydrogen atom * The emission frequency of the nitrogen atom * The emission frequency of the oxygen atom * Morrison's high school locker number 6. The convention of using 1420 MHz (the emission frequency of hydrogen, the most common element in the universe) has continued as the target frequency of SETI projects even today. Later, another SETI supporter, Bernard Oliver, VP of Hewlett Packard suggested the emission frequency of another common molecule, hydroxyl. Hydrogen and hydroxyl form water. The frequency 1662, is near 1420 in the spectrum and Oliver believed that the range between them held the greatest possibility of communication. In 1971, Oliver wrote "Where shall we meet? At the water-hole, Of course!" The term water-hole became associated with this band of the spectrum as being common to "water-based" life. The term refers to any searches near the hydrogen emission frequency. Go to the Tranquil Waterfall in the Audubon Wildlife Adventure game and say, "I think there is a meeting here." 7. Frank Drake, a young astronomer was also looking into interstellar communications. He was at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory at Green Bank WV. NRAO was unusual in that it was a radio observatory that didn't yet have a radio telescope. A 140-foot dish was planned to be constructed at the site, however there was trouble with the construction. In the interim, the NRAO bought an 85-foot radio telescope. Shortly before the new telescope went operational in April of 1959, Drake proposed the idea that they could search for a strong radio signal from space using the new telescope. He calculated that it should be able to detect signals from up to 10 light years distant, sent by transmitters similar to ones on earth. He wanted to start by concentrating on some of the sun-like stars within a radius of 10 light years from our planet. What did Drake name his project? * The Drake Schedule * NRAO Intelligence Communication Search Project * Project Ozma * Water-Hole Ten 8. When the new radio telescope began to gather information, Green Bank kept working on Ozma. In order to save money, they used the hydrogen frequency, as it would require the least amount of expense. Otto Struve, director of NRAO, brought the secret project out into the open at a lecture he gave at MIT. The publicity brought much needed funding and equipment. By combining an experimental parametric amplifier donated by Microwave Associates, the novel maser technology and the 85 foot dish, a level of sensitivity over a thousand times previously possible was achieved. Despite over 200 hours of observation on two suns, Ozma did not detect a signal from space, however it became a model for future SETI projects. Go to the Gate House in Medieval Age and say what Drake said about the public release of Project Ozma. Say "The cat was out of the bag." 9. It was not until a decade later that another "post-Ozma" SETI project was started in the US known as Ozpa. It was followed in 1972-76 by Ozma II, and a number of projects smaller in scope and duration. The most famous and longest running of the searches used the giant radio telescope located at Ohio State University. It was not shaped like the conventional dish, but instead was a flat aluminum surface approximately the size of three football fields. The dish included a huge reflector at each end. One of the reflectors was flat and the other was parabolic in shape, and the telescope possessed the sensitivity of a 175-foot dish. It searched continuously in the hydrogen line from 1973 to 1998, when it was dismantled. What was the name of this famous radio telescope? * Buckeye Telescope * Big Ear * OSMA * SET Scanner 10. The most momentous event of the 25 year history of Big Ear, and the history of SETI happened in the night of August 15, 1977. The Big Ear was searching for a signal of alien origin, and the read outs were composed of numbers and characters. One printout recorded a transmission which surprised the Big Ear volunteer Jerry Ehman, who was monitoring the readings. He circled the sequence "6EQUJ5" for later reference, and made a comment in the margin. The signal met the qualifications for a possible alien signal. It was artificial and of celestial origin, but it has been speculated that it may have come from a space probe that was unknown to the researchers. It remains the closest that any of the SETI search projects have come to detecting an alien signal. Go to the lobby of the Fireworks game in Victorian Age, and say the comment that Jerry Ehman made in the margins of the printout. Say "Wow!" Answers 1. From somewhere in the galaxy 2. Go to the Australian Outback Room I and say, "Little green men!" 3. 1959 4. Go to the Grand Hotel and say, "but if we never search, the chance of success is zero." 5. The emission frequency of the hydrogen atom 6. Go to the Tranquil Waterfall and say, "I think there is a meeting here." 7. Project Ozma 8. Go to the Gate House and say, "The cat was out of the bag." 9. Big Ear 10. Go to the 4th of July Fireworks and say, "Wow!" Category:Quests